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At recent Reform UK press conferences, two very distinctive figures can often be spotted in the forefront: the near-white locks of Danny Kruger and the swept-back blond mane of James Orr.

Beyond shaping the policy programme for what could be the UK’s future administration, the duo share another trait in common. Each is a deeply committed believer who found religion in adulthood, and hold trenchant views on matters of society such as reproductive rights and the family.

Connections and Convictions

Kruger, an MP, who defected from the Conservatives, and Orr, a Cambridge academic, are members of the steering committee of a rightwing thinktank known as the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship.

Another member is the financier Paul Marshall, the investment tycoon who owns GB News and the conservative Spectator magazine. He is also a devout Christian.

“Religion, specifically evangelical Christianity, has in recent decades been one of the defining elements of American conservative politics,” its followers providing the core of Donald Trump’s support.

Transatlantic Links

Parallels do exist. Orr is sufficiently close to JD Vance that he has welcomed him at his family home. Orr is also active in the National Conservatism movement, which has ties to the US religious-populism world.

But any closer comparisons soon fall down due to a basic issue of numbers. While surveys indicate that nearly a quarter of US adults are evangelicals, the figure for the UK is about a tenth of that at most.

A Different Landscape

An additional important factor to take into account. While US evangelicals lean firmly to the political right, recent surveys by the UK’s Evangelical Alliance suggests that the wider picture in Britain is quite different.

A poll of nearly 1,500 evangelicals places the Labour Party in the lead with 26% support. Reform and the Liberal Democrats are tied on 20%, with the Conservatives on 18%.

Other questions reveal support among evangelicals for more generous welfare payments, but also concerted alarm about plans to legalise assisted suicide.

“Among evangelicals there can be a dissonance between personal views, particularly regarding social issues, and how people cast their ballot,” said one advocacy head. “For example, someone might have a strong opinion on abortion, but they don’t see voting as likely to lead to change.”

Faith Across the Aisle

Evangelical belief does exist in parliament, including all-party faith-based meetings. But it is a phenomenon present on the left, with figures like Kruger balanced out by the Lib Dem Tim Farron and the Labour Party Member of Parliament Rachael Maskell.

She has been very open about how her beliefs shapes her politics, especially concerning issues such as economic disadvantage.

“Moral justice was ‘a big part’ of the party's ethos,” Maskell argued. “It’s part of our roots, how we think about disparity in society, making sure we have a fair framework.”

Emerging Currents

There is, however a distinct and more recent side to religion in UK politics, one influenced by US concepts of faith-based nationalism.

Tommy Robinson has begun to portray himself as openly a Christian, although much of this is done as a contrast to Islam.

In a similar vein, Nick Tenconi, who leads the UK outpost of the Turning Point group, includes social media messaging about the country needing to “re-embrace Christianity” alongside anti-Islam content.

In a dramatic display of this, a linked Christian nationalist group called King’s Army marched in formation through Soho, a location seemingly chosen as it is the heart of London’s LGBT community.

A Niche Phenomenon

These elements remain, however, relatively marginal in UK politics. While critics sometimes portray certain figures as wealthy incubators of US-style evangelism, associates insist they are simply devout believers who are strongly opposed to any political exploitation of faith.

He has been not shy of occasional off-piste language, for example in an address to censure what he said was a younger generation influenced by a mix of ideologies.

“In the UK you do have a few Christian nationalists, but when it comes to politics it tends to be a sort of Christian nostalgia, linked to our historical character,” said one commentator.

One Christian MP on the right noted that while the issue of assisted dying had united MPs with faith, any links beyond that felt limited.

“I certainly don’t get the sense of much of an organized faith-based lobby,” they said. “In my view, my faith is more a foundation for what I personally hold. And here, religion is not particularly a decisive electoral issue.”